Interactive book

Abstract: An interactive book or device (100) having a mechanism for generating a plurality of sensory outputs in a manner that maximizes the interaction between the user and the book or device. The interactive book includes function initiators (106) for initiating a unique sensory output that corresponds to a visual indicia (114) on a page of the book (104). A function level selector (108) is coupled to the function initiators (106) that selectively changes a function level and thereby selectively changes the sensory output corresponding to each function initiator (106). Consequently, the number of sensory outputs is increased and thereby enables greater interaction between the user and the book. It also encourages the user to creatively combine the sensory outputs to obtain a cognizable aggregate output.

Description: The invention relates generally to interactive books and devices and, more particularly, to interactive books and devices in which sensory outputs are provided for each page of the book or layout of the device. A book can be more fun as an amusement device and more effective as an educational tool when it has features that not only engage the attention of the user but also encourage the creativity of the user. Books with various interactive features have been proposed in the past. One such book is disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 4,884,974 to DeSmet. This patent discloses a book usable with an audio player assembly that provides audio outputs relevant to material on the printed page in response to actuation of any of a series of buttons. One button provides an audible reading of the text on the page of the book. Another button provides an audible question pertaining to the information given in the written text. The remaining two buttons provide choices of answers to the question. Another example of an interactive book is disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 4,990,092 to Cummings. This patent discloses a book having a series of buttons mounted along the outer edge of the bottom cover. Each button is programmed to provide an audio output relevant to a corresponding page of the book. Yet another example interactive book is disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 4,997,374 to Simone. This patent discloses a book device having an audio program source that provides audio outputs either of the text on a particular page of the book or a question pertaining to that text. A user answers any question by actuating any of a plurality of answer buttons. Other interactive books have been proposed as well. See, for example, U.S. Patent No. 4,636,881 to Brefka et al., U.S. Patent No. 4,809,246 to Jeng, U.S. Patent No. 5,167,508 to McTaggart and PCT Publication No. WO 91/06090 (Billings et al). WO-A-90/15402 discloses a toy or educational device having a housing with an upper surface on which a book or sheet of paper may rest. Underneath the surface a number of proximity sensors are provided. The upper surfaces provided with electrical or optical sensors adapted to identify codes formed on the rear face of the book or sheet of paper. The sheet of paper is located on the upper surface of the housing and a loud speaker gives preliminary instructions to the user. When a finger is placed upon a certain part of the picture, the machine then responds with further comments. These known interactive books, however, do not provide a mechanism that maximizes the amount of sensory outputs available to the user. Nor do these known books enable creative combination of the sensory outputs by the user. Consequently, the interaction between the user and the book is not as great as it could be and the user is more likely to grow bored or to lose interest. This invention provides an apparatus comprising means for storing a set of discrete sensory outputs, means for outputting each of each sensory outputs, a plurality of pages each including a plurality of visual indicia, a plurality of function initiators coupled to said output means, each of said function initiators initiating the output of a unique sensory output by said output means, function level selector means coupled to each of said function initiators for selecting from a number of function levels of the apparatus to change the sensory output of said function initiators, each of said function initiators being associated with a different sensory output at each of said function levels and each of said function levels corresponding to a respective one of said pages, and a support member supporting said storage means, said output means, said plurality of function initiators, said function change selector means and said pages, wherein the function level selector means are manually operable, an indicator is provided for displaying the selected function level, and wherein each of said function initiators corresponds to at least one of said visual indicia on a page, all of the function initiators being physically distinct from all of said visual indicia. The invention thus provides an interactive book or device in which the mechanism that provides the sensory outputs maximizes the interaction between the user and the book or device both by increasing the number of different sensory outputs available to the user and by enabling the user to creatively combine those sensory outputs. For example, in one combination, when the book is opened, a page having visual indicia is exposed. Through the actuation of a function level selector, a function level corresponding to the exposed page is selected. That function level provides each of a set of function initiators with the capability of providing a unique sensory output which corresponds to one or more visual indicia on the selected page of the book. Each page represents a different function level therefore, for each page, a different sensory output is provided for each initiator which, in turn, leads to a different sensory output for each visual indicia on each page. Furthermore, the mechanism can be configured such that the sensory outputs for each function level (i.e. each page) may be initiated sequentially to provide one cognizable aggregate output, according to the creativity of the user. For example, a page may be selected that has a function level (selected by actuating the function level selector) in which the sensory output provided by each of the function initiators is an audible reading of a word printed on the page. By actuating the function initiators in a particular sequence, the entire output can provide one cognizable output in the form of a sentence made up of words written on the page. Furthermore, depending on the creativity of the user, the sequence can be varied to provide any number of aggregate cognizable outputs. The same concept can be applied to providing a cognizable output in the form of a melody generated from individual notes printed on the page. The user can initiate the sensory outputs to provide the melody printed on the page or initiate the outputs in a creative sequence and thereby generate a new melody. By providing a mechanism that has different function levels according to the pages in the book, there are a greater number of sensory outputs available for the user to initiate. This also enables the user to create aggregate outputs. Consequently, the interaction of the user with the book is maximized. The following is a description of some specific embodiments of the invention, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a schematic perspective view of an interactive book constructed according to the principles of the invention. Fig. 2 is a block diagram of the interactive book of Fig. 1. Figs. 3-6 are plan views of four embodiments of interactive books with a particular page exposed. An interactive book 100 in accordance with the principles of the invention is shown schematically in Fig. 1 and in block diagram form in Fig. 2. The interactive book includes a base 102 on which is supported each of the components of the interactive book 100, including the pages of the book 104, a speaker 110, function initiator buttons 106, a function level selector 108 and a display 112 for showing the function level. The components of the interactive book 100 all being supported on the base 102 provides for an interactive book 100 that is compact and readily available for immediate use. With reference to the block diagram in Fig. 2, the operation of the interactive book 100 is controlled with an electronic storage/logic chip 103 which provides electronic interface with the function initiator buttons 106, the function level selector 108, the visual output (display) 112 and the audio output (speaker) 110. Stored in the chip 103 are a plurality of function levels for the interactive book, there being one function level corresponding to each page of the book 104. Each function level provides each function initiator button 106 with the capability of initiating a unique sensory output (through the speaker 110) for that function level. It will be appreciated that the sensory output need not be exclusively an audio output. It is contemplated that the sensory output could be a visual output, an audio output, a combination of an audio and visual output, or any other sensory output. The selection of a particular function level is performed through actuation of the function level selector 108. With each actuation of the selector 108, the chip 103 will cause a change in the display 112 in a way that the user can determine which function level is currently selected. In operation, the user will initially open the book 104 to a particular page, for example, to page 1. The user will then actuate the function level selector 108 until the display indicates that the function level for page 1 is selected. Making reference then to the visual indicia 114 printed on page 1, the user then can initiate certain audio outputs (by actuating the function initiator buttons 106) that have correspondence to the visual indicia 114 on the page. For example, the visual indicia "A" could pertain to a certain word such that, upon actuating function initiator button "A", the chip 103 will send a signal to the speaker 110 that audibly states that particular word. When finished with page 1, the user will move to a subsequent page, for example, to page 2, and will then actuate the function level selector 108 until the display 112 indicates that the function level for page 2 is selected. Upon selection of the level for page 2, the audio output for each function initiator button 106 is changed to now be relevant to the visual indicia 114 printed on page 2 instead of page 1. For example indicia "A" on page two could pertain to a certain musical note such that, upon actuation of function initiator button "A", the chip 103 will send a signal to the speaker 110 that plays that particular musical note. On certain pages, each of the visual indicia 114 may correspond to a certain word such that when each of the words is strung together in a particular sequence a sentence is formed. Consequently, upon actuating the function initiator buttons 106 (for each visual indicia) in a particular sequence, an aggregate cognizable output can be obtained in the form of an audible sentence. In a configuration where the sensory output is visual instead of audio, the actual text may be shown on an LCD display. An example of such a sentence could be "A Cat Sat On The Hat" where each of the six words in that sentence appear as a visual indicia 114 on the printed page and correspond to the sensory output of one of the function initiator buttons 106. Because each function initiator button 106 provides a sensory output of only one of the words in the sentence, the user may experiment with forming different sentences with those words by experimenting with different sequences of the function initiator buttons 106. For example, by creatively actuating the function initiator buttons 106, the user can create a sentence such as "On The Hat The Cat Sat" or "On The Cat Sat The Hat." A similar capability is obtained for pages where the visual indicia 114 are musical notes. When each of the notes is strung together (by sequentially actuating the appropriate function initiator buttons 106) according to a particular sequence printed on the page, a melody is formed and can therefore be heard. However, the user can ignore the sequence suggested by the visual indicia 114 on the page and experiment at creating the user's own desired melodies. In this connection, it will be appreciated that the sensory output for each function initiator need not be just one note but that it could be a combination of notes (e.g., a melody segment). Furthermore, some of the function initiators could be configured to play a note while others could be configured to produce sound effects such as animal noises or percussion instrument sounds. This gives even greater creative options to the user. In Figs. 1 and 2, the correspondence between the visual indicia 114 on the printed page and the function initiator buttons 106 is indicated through the use of letters (i.e. "A, B, C, etc.). However, the correspondence can also be obtained through the use of color coding whereby the color of the visual indicia 114 has the same color of the function initiator button 106 to which it corresponds. Similarly, the correspondence can also be obtained through the use of shape whereby the visual indicia 114 includes a figure that has the same shape as the function initiator button 106 to which it corresponds. Finally, the correspondence could be obtained through the use of any combinations of the above. Similarly, a display 112 is not the only way the function level may be viewed. For example, the function level selector 108 could be configured to be a rotary knob whereby the function level is indicated by viewing the setting of the rotary knob. Another option is to configure the function level selector to be a multiple position switch whereby the function level is indicated by viewing the position of the switch. Further features can be introduced to the interactive book to further encourage the interaction between the user and the book. Such features can include a logic function in the chip 103 that creates a game out of actuating the function initiator buttons 106. It can also include a logic function that creates a Question and Answer interaction between the book and the user. Furthermore, the relation between the visual indicia 114 and the function initiator buttons 106 can be supplemented by other sensory output buttons as well as a short term memory function that can repeat a previous sensory output. These and other features are described with reference to Figs. 3-6. Referring to Fig. 3, a first embodiment of an interactive book 100 is shown and includes a base 102 having rounded handle 201 fixed to the top for easy handling by the user. The book 104 is centrally mounted in the base 102 and is illustrated with cartoon characters along with visual indicia 114. In this case, each of the visual indicia corresponds to one word in the sentence, "Joan lives under the blue sea." The function initiator buttons 106 are located below the book 104. The function level selector is separated into two buttons 108A, 108B, one for moving upward to a higher level, the other for moving downward to a lower level. The speaker 110 is mounted on the base 102 between the two function level selector buttons 108A, 108B. The visual display 112 is mounted above the book 104 and comprises a conventional LCD device. The display indicates the function level that is selected which, in this case, corresponds to the page number 212 printed on the page of the book 104. As shown in Fig. 3, function level 3 has been selected which corresponds to page 3 of the book 104. Consequently, by sequentially actuating the function initiator buttons 106 from left to right, the sentence "Joan lives under the blue sea" will be output from the speaker 110. The user can also experiment with different sequences to create different sentences. One example sentence that could be generated is "The Sea Lives." To further enhance the interaction of the user and the book, a discrete memory is provided that will play back a preceding output. The content of that memory is played back by actuating a memory button 208 located at an upper right hand side of the base 102. The memory is cleared by actuating a memory clear button 210 located an upper left hand side of the base 102. Also provided are two supplementary function initiator buttons 202 located on either side of the row of function initiator buttons 106. The left button 202 provides an audio output resembling the sound of the sea when depressed. The right button 202 provides an audio output resembling the sound of fish. The user is prompted to depress each of these buttons according to visual indicia 212 that appear after the lines of text on the left side of page 3. The visual indicia 212 also appears on the left half of page 3 immediately above the location of the supplementary buttons 202. These supplementary function initiator buttons 202 are also available to the user for introducing sound effects to new compositions created by the user. Referring to Fig. 4, a second embodiment of an interactive book 100 is shown and includes a book 104 that aids the user in learning words of different languages. The visual indicia 114 on the page shows the term of a particular object in two different languages, e.g., "Plane" (English) and "Plano" (Spanish). Furthermore, each term is shown to correspond to a particular function initiator button 106. Consequently, by pressing the corresponding function initiator button 106, the user can hear the pronunciation of the words for the particular object in two different languages. It is noted that the indicia for showing the corresponding function initiator button 106 utilizes letter designation (i.e., "A", "B", etc.) in conjunction with shape (i.e., a circle and a hexagon). This designation corresponds to the actual shapes and letter of the buttons 106 themselves. It would also be possible to use color coding in combination with shape to achieve the appropriate designation. In order to further enhance the interaction of the user and the book, interactive book 100 is provided with a game circuit that may be actuated by pressing a game initiation button 302 located at an upper right hand location of the base 102. Upon initiating the game circuit, a particular audio output corresponding to one of the terms printed on the page 104 will be played through the speaker 110. The user is then required to determine which term has been played and then press the function initiator button 106 that corresponds to it. The game circuit will indicate with another audio output whether the term that was selected was correct. The interactive book of Fig. 4 has the same shape as the base of the interactive book shown in Fig. 3. The function level selector 108A and 108B, the visual display 112 and the page number 212 for the book is also the same as that for the interactive book of Fig. 3. Referring to Fig. 5, a third embodiment of an interactive book 100 is shown which includes a book 104 with printed visual indicia that aid a user to learn certain facts on a particular topic. The visual indicia on page 3 are in the form of a series factual questions about the dinosaur "Tyrannosaurus Rex", the answers to which must be selected from two choices for each question. Each answer, A, B is shown to correspond to a particular function initiator button 106 for each question. For example, for question number 1, "How many teeth did a tyrannosaurus have?", the user must choose between answers A, "52", or answer B, "124". The user looks to the bottom of the right half of page 3 to determine which function initiator buttons 106 correspond to question 1. The user than presses either the "A" button or the "B" button to indicate the chosen answer. If the answer is correct, an LED 503 located at the top of the base 102 illuminates. If the answer is incorrect, an LED 501, also located at the top of the base 102, illuminates. A different series of questions is provided on each page 104. To enhance the interaction between the user and the interactive book 100, a game circuit is provided that will challenge the user's ability to answer the questions quickly. The game circuit incorporates a game switch 508 located at the upper right edge of the base 102, a countdown display 502 and a score display 504, both displays being located above the book 104 on either side of the visual display 112 for the function level. Upon depressing the game switch 508, a timer will be initiated that counts down from 10 seconds to zero seconds. If the question is answered correctly within the first five seconds, the user scores 3 points. If the question is answered correctly within the second five seconds, the user scores 2 points. In the event the question is answered correctly after time has expired, only 1 points awarded. The score is indicated in the score display 504. To further supplement the interaction between the user and the book, a supplemental sensory output button 506 is provided at an upper left edge of the base 102. Upon pressing this supplemental button, a sound effect may be initiated. An example output may be the spoken words "No Way" or "Far Out". The interactive book of Fig. 5 has the same shape as the base of the interactive book shown in Figs 3 and 4. The function level selector 108A and 108B, the visual display 112 and the page number 212 for the book is also the same as that for the interactive book of Figs. 3 and 4. Referring to Fig. 6, a fourth embodiment of an interactive book 100 is shown and includes a book 104 with page 3 having visual indicia 114 in the form of printed musical notes of a particular melody. A letter, "A, B, C,...", is printed near each musical note and corresponds to a particular function initiator button 106 having the same letter designation. Through actuating the function initiator buttons 106 in a sequence that follows the sequence of notes on the page, the melody is output through the speaker 110. A different melody is provided on each page and, therefore, for each function level. In addition to playing the melody on the printed page, the user may experiment in creating new melodies by simply pressing the function initiator buttons 106 in any desired sequence, much like playing a piano. To enhance the interaction between the user and the book 104, several audio and visual features are provided. For example, by actuating an on/off button 607 located at an upper right edge of the base 102, a plurality of LED's 602, each of which correspond to a function initiator button 106, are sequentially illuminated. If the user actuates the function initiators according to the sequence shown by the illuminated LED's, the melody depicted on the page will be output. In that connection, a rhythm circuit is also provided whereby, according to the position of a rhythm switch 604, a fast or slow rhythm can be provided to aid in the playing of the melody. The outputs through the speaker 110 are normally a simple musical tone. However, a sound circuit is provided whereby the musical tone can be changed to any melodic or sound effect variation which can then be combined to form a cognizable aggregate output. This is initiated by moving a sound effect switch 606 to a particular position. A particular animal sound may be chosen, for example, from a plurality of different animal sounds according to the position of the switch. Although particular embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made without departing from this invention in its broader aspects and, therefore, the aim in the appended claims is to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the scope of the claims.

Claims: An apparatus comprising: means (103) for storing a set of discrete sensory outputs; means (110) for outputting each of each sensory outputs; a plurality of pages (104) each including a plurality of visual indicia; a plurality of function initiators (106) coupled to said output means, each of said function initiators initiating the output of a unique sensory output by said output means, function level selector means (108) coupled to each of said function initiators for selecting from a number of function levels of the apparatus to change the sensory output of said function initiators, each of said function initiators being associated with a different sensory output at each of said function levels and each of said function levels corresponding to a respective one of said pages; and a support member (102) supporting said storage means, said output means, said plurality of function initiators, said function change selector means and said pages; characterised in that the function level selector means are manually operable, an indicator is provided for displaying the selected function level, and in that each of said function initiators corresponds to at least one of said visual indicia on a page, all of the function initiators being physically distinct from all of said visual indicia. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that said words of said sensory outputs are at each of said levels, in multiple orders to form a plurality of phrases or sentences. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, characterised in that said function initiators (106) are grouped into a plurality of pairs of initiators, one of said initiators in each of said pairs initiating the output of a word or phrase by said output means in a first language, and the other of said initiators in each of said pair initiating the output of the same word or phrase by said output means in a second language. An apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that said page contains a plurality of questions, each of said visual indicia representing an answer corresponding to one of said questions and each of said sensory outputs indicating whether said visual indicia is a correct or an incorrect answer to said corresponding question. An apparatus as claimed in claim 4, further comprising: a timer circuit for specifying a counting of a specific period of time; and a scoring circuit for counting the number of function initiators which correspond to said visual indicia which is a correct answer, initiated during said specific period of time. An apparatus as claimed in claim 3, characterised in that a sensory output indicating a correct response is associated with said function initiators corresponding to visual indicia which indicate a correct response to said corresponding question, and a sensory output indicating an incorrect response is associated with said function initiators corresponding to visual indicia which indicate the incorrect response to said corresponding question. An apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 6 comprising; a combination memory for storing an ordered set of said sensory outputs, said ordered set being comprised of the sensory outputs associated with a set of selected function initiators on a selected one of said levels and being ordered in the order in which said function initiators are selected; a combination initiator for initiating the output of said ordered set of sensory outputs by said output means. An apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 7, further comprising a supplemental function initiator for initiating the output of a sound effect. An apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 8, characterised in that each of said sensory outputs is a visual output.

Inventors: BURROWS ROGER IAN, MORRIS MICHAEL JOHN, BURROWS, ROGER IAN, MORRIS, MICHAEL JOHN
Applicants: READER S DIGEST CHILDREN S PUB, READER'S DIGEST CHILDREN'S PUBLISHING, INC.
Application year: 1994
Main classification: G09B5
IPC codes: G09B5, A63H33